China, Bahrain establish comprehensive strategic partnership

TOKYO, May 31 (KUNA) - Chinese President Xi Jinping and Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa on Friday announced the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries, a new milestone in bilateral relations, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.
The announcement came as Xi held talks with Al Khalifa, who is in China for a state visit. The king also attended the opening ceremony of the 10th ministerial conference of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum in Beijing on Thursday.
"Bahrain is a good friend and partner of China in the Gulf region," Xi said, adding that although the two countries have different national conditions, they have always treated each other sincerely and enjoyed friendly relations.
As this year marks the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Bahrain, Xi said China is ready to work with Bahrain to develop their comprehensive strategic partnership and to bring more benefits to the two peoples.
"China firmly supports Bahrain's efforts to safeguard national sovereignty, security and stability, and supports Bahrain's path of independent development, as well as Bahrain's Economic Vision 2030 and its diversified development strategy," he said.
"China is willing to strengthen cooperation with Bahrain in the fields of energy, investment, transportation, new energy and digital economy, and achieve more results in high-quality Belt and Road cooperation," the president added.
For his part, Al Khalifa said Bahrain hopes to take the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership as an opportunity to align with the development strategies of the two countries, strengthen practical cooperation in various fields, and help Bahrain achieve diversified development, according to the report.
Bahrain is ready to work with China to promote the early conclusion of the GCC-China Free Trade Agreement, carry forward the spirit of Arab-Chinese friendship, and work together to build an Arab-Chinese community with a shared future for the new era, the king said.
Al Khalifa also briefed Xi on the 33rd Arab League summit held earlier this month in his kingdom, especially the position of the Arab countries on the Palestinian issue and the efforts made to end the Gaza conflict as soon as possible.
Stressing that China and Bahrain share the same position on the Palestinian issue, Xi said, "China appreciates the Arab League summit meeting for raising the common voice of Arab countries on the Palestinian-Israeli issue, and is ready to work with Bahrain and other Arab countries to promote a comprehensive, just and lasting settlement of the Palestinian issue at an early date." After the talks, the two heads of state witnessed the signing of a number of bilateral cooperation documents in the fields of investment, green and low-carbon, e-commerce, and digital economy. (end) mk.rk